The free school group, Education in Suffolk, has claimed some parents “do not want” to send their children to Stowmarket and Stowupland high schools.

But Mr Penn questioned where the group was getting its information from.

“Whoever the group consists of, they made at least one claim that is not only anonymous but unsubstantiated – that parents ‘do not want to send their children’ to Stowmarket”, he said.

“I don’t know, and it’s hard to ask an anonymous group, where they get their information from. Parents have a right to choose a school for their child and may do so for a variety of reasons.

“As far as I know, a small number of parents from this area recently applying to schools outside the area are mostly in a younger age group (middle school age) and colleagues in local schools have told me that the common reason given by parents making such an application has been to avoid being in a middle school during the final year before closure; not a comment on the quality of middle school education and not to avoid any particular high school.”

Education in Suffolk was partly setup by former and current teachers as well as parents.